Love Will Remember
by s h r a d e r p
Summary: A fight causes Beck and Jade to break up, leading to a tragic accident that takes away her memory. He can't believe it took death knocking on the front door for him to realise how much he loves–and needs her, and swears to himself he'll stop at nothing to show her just how much she means to him. He and the gang try to help her remember… hilarity and romance ensue!
1. The Accident

Jade gripped the steering wheel tightly, her knuckles paper white, a stark contrast to the black leather of the wheel. Her windows were rolled down, leaving her hair to flutter wildly in the wind. She _felt_ she was going way too fast; she wasn't certain – she tried not to think about what went wrong. She wanted badly to hit the brakes and turn around, but her pride wouldn't let her. Instead she turned on the radio, desperately trying not to let the first tear fall out. She bit her lip to stifle the scream threatening to escape her throat. After sucking in a lungful of air, she exhaled slowly and let out a bitter laugh upon hearing the song on the radio. It was one of those songs that she disliked – because she thought they were cliché, and she never expected to have such a vivid understanding of them. But she did now.

Incompatibility. Differences. Family disapproval. Frustration. Jealously. Possessiveness. Mistrust. Attachment. Miscommunication. Secrecy. Attitude. Fights. Arguments. Priorities. Misunderstanding._ Maybe he felt forced. Maybe I held his hand too tight. Maybe it was never meant to work out in the first place. _Jade listed them all in her head, all the reasons why.

She grabbed her phone to check the time or maybe—_maybe_, even make a call, only to find out it was dead. She dejectedly tossed it onto the passenger seat. A strangled sob made its way past her lips and the tears immediately followed, blurring her vision.

* * *

All Tori could do was gape at Beck in disbelief.

"_Let's play some cards?_" she repeated, her voice so shrill soon only bats would be able to hear it.  
Beck sighed. "Tori."  
"I am so mad at you right now," she fumed.  
Cat cowered behind Robbie, clinging to his arm like it was a lifeline. She whimpered, "Guys!"  
"Look, I'm sick of the fighting," Beck said. "She's just difficult."  
"So? You've been together since middle school, for heaven's sake, and you just let it go like _this_?" Tori yelled in frustration.  
"Can we not talk about it right now?" Beck yelled back. "It's none of your—"  
"Guys, come on!" Robbie cut in. Cat started crying.  
"Calm down, y'all!" André added. He turned on the television, hoping to find a show that will distract the redhead. "Come here, little red."  
But instead of the cartoons he had hoped for, he got a live feed of _something_. "Guys, shh," he said, focusing on the TV. A car crash, involving a— "Shut up!" he yelled, causing his friends to cease their argument.

"We're not done." Tori rolled her eyes at Beck and looked at the screen.  
'…_yes Eric, barely ten minutes ago three people were wounded badly, and the drivers of the vehicles are both in critical condition. At least seventeen people had witnessed the Land Cruiser unexpectedly veer out of control and crash into the Ford Explorer. Several eyewitnesses say the Cruiser had been going the wrong way at a high rate of speed. More details about this later on our 8PM news. This is Claire Montgomery, live from—_'

They had all stopped listening as pictures of the damaged black Ford Explorer and bright red pickup were shown on the screen. There was an abundance of blood and fragments of glass and charred metal littered the scene.

"Jadey!" Cat cried, startling the rest. Beck felt his blood run cold.  
"_What?_" Tori choked out.  
"That was Jade's car," Robbie explained for her. Before any of them could open their mouths, Beck had already taken off, leaving the door open.

* * *

a/n: yes i know it's short… because it's kinda like an introduction or something like that. Do you like it so far? Do ya? DO YA? THEN LEAVE A REVIEW! [yells 'THANK YOU' aggressively]


	2. Waking Up

a/n: yaaaay! thank you guys for reviewing, i feel so appreciated!

* * *

Jade woke up to the obnoxious ticking of a clock. Her vision was hazy. She looked at the intimidating hospital machinery surrounding her. She was hooked up to an IV. She noticed other wires hanging from metal rods, the flickering light and the plain white walls. She felt like the room was closing in on her. She willed herself to take deep breaths. Soon her eyes adjusted better to the harsh lighting, and she saw the pained expressions on some people's faces when she looked to her right. Her parents, her little brother… A wave of relief washed over her.  
She struggled to remember what happened and why she was here, but before she could ask, all of them rushed over as if in a frenzy.  
"Oh, Jadelyn!" her mother cried, wiping away tears.  
"Thank God," she heard her father sigh.  
Her little brother grabbed her hand. "You've been asleep for three days."  
"How are you feeling, honey?" Jade's mother asked, her eyes scanning her daughter's face anxiously.  
Jade closed her eyes. Her head throbbed badly, and the room was spinning. Goose bumps rose on her skin.  
"Give her some room," Jade's father said. He had been the sensible one, calling for a doctor. They immediately took a few steps back, except for her brother, who still clutched her hand tightly.  
They waited until the doctor walked in, and only then did Jade open her eyes.  
"Mr and Mrs West," he said. He then turned to look at Jade. "Miss West."  
Jade blinked at him as a sign of acknowledgement, and the doctor started speaking again. Her family was standing in a circle as the doctor explained to them the things she didn't bother to comprehend. She heard the words 'retrograde amnesia' and 'memory loss' and finally pieced it together.  
"Why am I here?" she finally asked.  
"You were in a car accident," her father said.  
"Because of the impact, you may not remember some things," her mother smiled faintly, "well, a lot of things. I'm glad you remember us."

The doctor nodded and once again reminded her parents to be careful. About what, Jade didn't know. When the doctor left, saying Jade would be discharged in two days time, a group of people she didn't recognise entered. Shouts of _She's awake!_, _Jade!_ and _Oh my God!_ filled the room.  
"Jade, you're okay," Beck sighed in relief.  
Tori stared at Jade's parents. She was angry. She couldn't exactly pinpoint why, but she was. They were pretending they hadn't been shitty parents for the past sixteen years and it made her blood boil. Jade looked at her curiously.  
Beck took Jade's hand in his, diverting her attention to him. "Jade, I'm sorry—"  
Cat released a shrill cry and rushed to her best friend's bedside, hugging her carefully. "Jadey, are you okay?"  
Jade patiently waited for the redhead to let her go and stared at the boy whose hand covered her own. She gently pulled her hand out of his grasp.  
"Look, this is so weird," she began weakly. Her head had started throbbing again. "I don't… I'm—who are you? What–?"  
Beck's eyebrows shot up. Robbie and André clapped their hands over their mouths. Cat's bottom lip quivered and she burst out sobbing.  
Jade looked even more confused.  
"You don't remember?" Beck asked, letting go of her hand.  
Jade shook her head with difficulty – she realised she was aching all over. Her headache was killing her. Black spots danced in front of her, making her squeeze her eyes shut.  
"That's okay," her mom stepped in, concerned. "Rest, sweetheart."  
"Come on, guys. Let her catch some z's. This is too much for her," André said.  
"Yeah," Tori finally spoke. "We'll, um, visit again tomorrow. Get well soon, Jade."

* * *

The gang walked out of the hospital, grievous for once.

"Jade doesn't remember me!" Cat sobbed into Robbie's shoulder.  
"She doesn't remember any of us," Tori snapped, growing irritated.  
"She didn't mean to snap at you, little red," André explained gently, patting Cat's hair. He shot Tori a pointed look.  
"Sorry," Tori sighed. "Let's grab some lunch then go back to HA?"  
"Sounds good," Andre said.  
Beck, who insisted on staying with Jade, followed them around. He felt guilty. And scared. Yes, _scared_. Just the thought of Jade not ever remembering him and their relationship scared him.  
"Cheer up, Beck," Tori said, ever the optimist.  
Beck thought he could finally understand why she irritated Jade. "Yeah, okay."  
"Look, she's gonna get her memory back," André said, determined.  
Robbie nodded. "I'll try to help her. You guys in?"  
"What kinda question is that?" André said, managing a smile.  
A sense of hope filled them, and that hope was enough to keep them going for the day.


	3. Let's Talk

a/n: heyyyyy! third update of the day! it's because of the reviews, you know? *nudge nudge*  
i love the victorious fandom omg. anyway, i feel like i've done something wrong. there's this weird feeling in my stomach telling me.

oh, i never wrote a disclaimer! There it is. I knew I forgot something. So... yeah.

disclaimer: me no own

* * *

Tori leaned against her locker, flicking its switch rapidly, making the words _make it shine_ flash. "I miss Jade."  
Hollywood Arts was still the same, except now people bothered them even more (them meaning Beck). Robbie supposed it's because Jade wasn't there to shoo them away with her death stares. So he agreed. "Me too."  
"Beck!" A bunch of peppy cheerleaders approached them, giggling madly. Apparently, news about Beck and Jade's breakup had spread already.  
"Hey Beck, you look _so_ hot today! Like, _wow_."  
"Ooh, can I touch your hair?"  
"No," he said, repressing the urge to add 'Jade's the only one allowed to touch my hair.'  
The girls continued fawning over him anyway. Cat frowned. She remembered when Jade would yell angrily at girls who flirted with Beck, and then Beck would kiss her cheek and reassure her that he loves her.  
"It's so crowded," she complained. "I wish they would leave. I miss Jadey!"  
"I know!" Tori yelled exasperatedly. "Now you see what I mean?!"  
André shook his head at the scene before him. "This is so complicated."  
"I hate Mondays without Jade," Cat pouted.  
"She's coming back on Thursday," Beck told her after he managed to get the girls off his back. "Don't worry."  
"Why Thursday?" Tori asked. "I thought it was Wednesday."  
"Well, she's got to rest," André said.  
"And she's got that case with the drunk driver who crashed into her car," Robbie added.  
Beck ran a hand through his hair, something he did when he was unsettled.  
"Oh, was that the bell? Come on, we're late!" Tori said loudly, noticing his demeanour. "Hurry, hurry!"

* * *

Cat burst into Jade's dreary hospital room. She had been looking forward to visiting since the day began. "Hi Jade!"  
"Hey, Cat," Jade said, making the redhead squeal in delight.  
Tori raised an eyebrow.  
"I told her about you guys," Jade's nine year-old little brother piped up. "I'm not sure if I was accurate, but I did my best."  
"Thanks, Justin." Tori smiled.  
"You should go," Jade said. "You can't keep skipping school. Go call mom. Bye."  
Justin grabbed his baseball cap and ran out of the room. "Later!"  
"So," Tori said, dragging out the o. "Wanna test how accurate he was?"  
Jade sat up despite her aching body. She glanced at each of them and recited their names as she looked at them. "Cat, Robbie, André, Beck… and you're Tori."  
Tori nodded. "You know anything else?"  
"Yeah. We go to Hollywood Arts and I hate all of you," Jade said.  
The group couldn't help the small smiles that crept onto their faces. She might have lost her memories, but she's still Jade.  
"What else?"  
Jade thought for a moment and fixed her gaze on Beck. "We used to date. We broke up, then I drove home but… yeah."  
"That's… correct." He nervously chewed on his lip and thought back to their argument.

"_It's not like you didn't fucking do anything wrong!" Jade yelled. "You flirt with other girls and you kissed—"  
_"_Don't bring that up now, that was _months_ ago! Get over it!" he yelled back._ _"Learn to let go!"  
__Jade opened her mouth to say something, but he cut her off.  
_"_I'm tired of this, it's the same argument every damn time! Sometimes I don't even know why I put up with this!"  
__He regretted saying the words as soon as they came out of his mouth. Silence fell over the group – it was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.  
_"_Okay," Jade said, her jaw set. Her voice shook a little when she spoke. "You know what? This… it's—we're through. If that's what you want."  
_"_Jade, I—"  
__She turned on her heels and ran._

When he was pulled out of his thoughts, Jade was done talking about what she knew so far.  
"I'm kinda hungry," André said. "Let's go get something from the cafeteria. You mind, Jade?"  
She shook her head no.  
"Yay!" Cat and Robbie ran out, talking animatedly about meatballs.  
André laughed. "Alright! Beck, you coming?"  
Beck shook his head. "No, I'm good."  
André and Tori shrugged at each other, then walked out too.  
"Jade, we need to talk," Beck started.  
"We don't," she said. Then, seeing the look on his face, added, "But talk anyway."  
"Look, I—"  
"Can you get that blanket over there?" Jade asked. "I'm kind of cold."  
He grabbed the blanket off the end of the bed and helped her get comfortable. "Feel okay?"  
"Yeah. Talk."  
"Okay. You probably don't remember how we broke up, but… I'm sorry. It's… oh, God. I wish I did something. I didn't want to let you walk out that door. If I hadn't, you wouldn't be here and we'd be okay. We'd be arguing, but… not broken up."  
"Yeah," Jade said, her face void of any emotion.


	4. A New Start

Days dragged on slowly and painfully, much to the gang's dismay, but today was different – it was Thursday.

"Guys!" a sharp cry echoed in the hallway as soon as the doors opened. Cat skittered to her friend quickly and jumped up and down excitedly. "Guess what today is!"  
Tori smiled at her. "Thursday! I can't wait to see Jade."  
Robbie nodded. "Yeah. I just texted Beck, and he told me they're—"  
The double doors swung open with a loud bang, revealing the aforementioned couple. Or ex-couple. Jade sported one of Beck's plaid shirts, skinny jeans and boots that looked like Tori owned them. Her hair was unstyled and hung in their natural waves, and she wore almost no makeup save for mascara and her usual lipstick. The student body was stunned by her change of appearance.  
"What?" she broke the silence, obviously annoyed (or unnerved?) by the stares.  
"Jade!" Cat screamed, running to her and giving her a hug. Jade tolerated the hug, _returned_ it, even.  
_Three seconds_, Tori counted the time it took for Jade to push the redhead off her. The Latina carefully approached the pale girl and held out her arms, grinning. "Come on, give Tori a squeeze!"  
Jade's eyebrows shot up (and Tori noticed her piercings were missing), before she shrugged and let the Latina hug her. Tori's heart swelled up when she felt Jade reciprocate – but then she felt her squeeze tighter and tighter by the second. It felt like a repeat of when she asked Jade for a hug so she can come with the gang to Yerba.  
"Jade!" she half-yelled, half-gasped.  
Jade let go and gave her a blank kind of stare. "You asked for a squeeze."  
"Hey Jade," Robbie greeted her nervously, expecting her to roll her eyes or maybe spit a sarcastic remark and a hurtful comment.  
What she said surprised him. "Hey Robbie."  
"Wha—" he gaped at her. His mouth opened and closed, like a fish out of water. Then he gave up – still not closing his mouth.  
"What? Why do you all look so confused?" Jade asked.  
"We'll talk about that later, but first I'll show you around," Beck said, before draping an arm around her shoulders and leading her away.  
"You think they got back together?" Tori asked hopefully.  
Robbie shook his head. "Nah."

* * *

"And this is Sikowitz's classroom," Beck said, concluding their little tour around the school. "Now you'll know how to find your way round the school."  
Jade nodded. She felt light-headed and dizzy, but no way in hell is she gonna let it mess up her first day back. "Thanks."  
Beck looked at her, shocked. "S-sure."  
"What?" she asked suspiciously.  
"Nothing," he said.  
Jade narrowed her eyes. "Okay."  
"I swear, it really is noth—"  
"Yeah, yeah, let's get inside," she drawled. She felt faint and wanted nothing more than to sit down.  
"All right." Beck held the door open for her. "After you."  
She stepped into the room and looked around.

_"Well?" Jade asked, tapping her foot impatiently on the wooden platform. She had just performed The Bird Scene and honestly doesn't see why no one reacted. "Was it good or not?"  
__Sikowitz stroked his beard. "Well… no."  
_"_What?" Jade hissed. "I'm pretty_ fuc—"  
_"Language."  
"I'm__ fairly certain I _aced_ the scene! You know what? Even if you didn't think so, at least I know I really did!" Jade cursed herself for sounding whiny.  
__Slowly, the classroom burst in applause. She raised an eyebrow but smirked nonetheless.  
"Excellent, Jadelyn." Sikowitz grinned. "Excellent!"  
__"Jade,_ _not Jadelyn," she corrected, returning to her seat beside Beck. He automatically draped an arm around her shoulder and let her rest her head on the crook of his neck._

"I just remembered something," she mused.  
Beck closed the door with a click and turned to face her. "What is it?"  
"The Bird Scene," Jade said. She and Beck chose a seat near the back and sat down, just before the rest of Sikowitz's students began filling up the room. André ran into the room, a sweaty mess.  
"André, you're late!" Tori complained immediately. "You missed—"  
"Give him a break," Jade said, rolling her eyes.  
André beamed at her. "Jade!"  
"André."  
"I'm glad you're back!" he said after a quick glance at the seething girls who had tried to make a move on his best friend. He grinned. "Honestly. You have no idea."  
Jade raised an eyebrow at him. "Oh."  
Sikowitz entered the room and then doubled over, only backwards. He nearly dropped his coconut. "You see Jade too, right?"  
Cat nodded and giggled, "Yeah!"  
"Yep. Right there," Robbie said.  
"Ah. I knew it'd take more than that to get rid of you!" Sikowitz laughed at his own joke. "How's my favourite student doing? Still got your acting skills intact? Fantastic!"  
Jade threw her head back and rolled her eyes.  
"Sikowitz!" Tori snapped.  
Jade looked at her and felt a tiny surge of anger and annoyance – it confused her. She groaned, "This is giving me a headache."  
Beck was quick to speak. "You should go home, it's probably because —"  
"I don't want to go home," Jade interrupted, sighing.  
"Yes, yes, you can continue your _canoodling_ on your own time," Sikowitz said. "Now, I want some volunteers for a fundraiser concert, to help homeless children—"  
"We'll do it!" Jade chirped, beating Tori to it. Everyone's jaws dropped open.  
"Y-yeah, we will!" Tori said with a wide smile, but her eyes just screamed confusion.

* * *

"Wanna get our own table?" Beck offered. "You don't have to sit with them if you don't want to."  
"What? Why wouldn't I want to sit with them?" Jade asked, shooting him a confused glance.  
"Never mind," he sighed and led her to their usual table with the group.  
"Hey, Beck! Jade," Tori greeted cheerfully, but her smile fell the tiniest bit when she looked at Jade.  
"Hey, Tori," Jade said before she sat down and set her bag on the table.  
Tori looked at Beck, confused. Beck simply smiled and sat down next to Jade.  
"So about that concert," André began. "We gotta have plans."  
"One time, my brother planned a surprise for his friend with a heart problem," Cat said.  
"What happened?" Jade asked, much to everyone's surprise.  
"His friend died of cardiac arrest," Cat replied, her smile not fading.  
"As I was saying," André continued after a moment of silence, "we need plans. Who's doing what?"  
"Jadey and I can sing a song together!" Cat chirped. She turned to the aforementioned girl. "Can we? Please, Jade?"  
"Sure," Jade shrugged.  
"We can do covers," Tori suggested in a loud voice, a little upset that she had been talking and everyone else hadn't been listening to her. Jade scrunched up her nose at Tori's attention-seeking.  
"That's not a bad idea," André said with a smile. "Let's all come up with a song each and decide on a set list."  
"Publicity, yay!" Tori cheered. "I can't believe we're performing in a coliseum."  
"A _small_ coliseum," Robbie said.  
"Packed with people, though," Tori insisted.  
Jade gathered her things and stood up. She said a quick 'bye' and began to walk away, coffee cup in tow.  
"Wait, Jade! Where are you going?" Beck called after her.  
"I'm gonna take a walk," she shouted back, waving over her shoulder.  
"You better go with her, Beck," André said.  
Beck nodded. "Yeah, I think I will."

* * *

a/n: reviews are energy drinks. be generous and give them to me, pls and ty


	5. Change

Beck scoured the hallways of Hollywood Arts, looking for the flash of teal-streaked hair. He realised Jade's hair was back to its natural colour again and cursed himself for forgetting. He was in the middle of contemplating resigning and going back to the café when he saw her a few steps ahead, tying the ends of his shirt in a bow-like knot.

_Thank you, plaid shirt_, he thought. _Yay Canada!  
_

"Jaaaade!" he shouted, darting past students in the corridor.  
Jade sighed upon hearing his voice. She had no idea why she was even ticked off in the first place, she just knew it has something to do with Tori. When she turned around, though, her irritation dissipated.  
Beck came to a stop in front of her and caught his breath. Then he gave her a bear hug.

"Stop it, you're embarrassing," she said, but she was laughing.

His heart raced at the sound – only Jade could prompt such a reaction. He had to stop himself from pressing a kiss in her hair – she wasn't his anymore (and it _hurt_). He's somewhat happy that after he told her about their breakup, she acted cool and normal (not _normal_-normal,un-amnesiac Jade was never fond of normal things) instead of being awkward around him.

"You're adorable," he blurted out.  
"I know," she said, still pressed to him (yes, she was fully aware of the stares they were getting, and yes, she doesn't care). "So, you gonna let me go now or…?"  
He let her squirm out of his grasp, and was about to apologise when he saw the red tint on her pale cheeks. He laughed.  
"What?" she asked, looking behind her. No one was there. "You know, sometimes I worry about—" she stopped talking when she realised his phone was out. Before she could protest, she heard the unmistakable sound of a snapshot.

"Aw, Jade!" he cooed.

"What?" she asked again.

He showed her the picture. "You were _blushing_!"

"So?" she said. "I mean, that's obviously embarrassing or whatever, but who doesn't do that?"

He shook his head. "Oh, Jade. Come on, let's get back to the Asphalt."

Before he could lead her away, however, Trina ran up to them.

"Jade!" she screeched. "Are we still on for shopping tonight?"

"Oh," Jade said, turning to face Beck. "I'm allowed to go, right?"

Beck's eyes almost bugged out. "What?"

"We're going shopping," Trina repeated slowly, as if she was talking to a child. "She wants your permiss—"

"I know, but– agh." He sighed in frustration. "Yeah, okay."

"We can actually do it now," Trina said excitedly. "I don't like History anyway."

"Neither."

Both girls smiled and in the blink of an eye, Jade was whisked away from him. He stared after them, confused. He shook his head and walked back to the Asphalt Café.

"Hey, Beck!" Tori said. "Where's Jade?"

"She ditched with Trina," he replied.

Tori's eyes looked like they were gonna pop out. She spluttered nonsensically before settling for a weak "What?"

"Yeah, they're going shopping."

"And they didn't tell me?" Cat pouted, crossing her arms.

André ignored her. "More importantly… _what the actual chiz_?!"

* * *

It was six thirty when a knock sounded in Beck's RV. He didn't bother to switch on the lights and opened the door still rubbing his eyes, thinking his mother just wanted to interrogate him about the Internet_ again_. He was planning out an elaborate response when—

"Beck!"  
He started and opened his eyes. "_Jade?_"

"Yeah, it's me!" she said, and he wondered if Trina finally rubbed off on her. She pushed past him and dumped her newly-bought pink tote bag on the floor. "Turn on the lights, come on!"

He sat on his bed and flicked on the switch. "Okay, now—"

"Tada!" she squeaked, gesturing at herself.  
It was taking him forever to respond. She was wearing a plain white tee that stopped at her midriff, a black floral skirt that started out tight at the waist then flared out and fell a few inches above her knees, and a pair of beige ankle-strap wedges.

"So, you don't like it?" she asked, frowning, a hint of disappointment in her voice.

"N-no! No, no, you look gorgeous!" Beck stuttered. "I just…"

_Don't want you showing yourself off so guys can ask you out_, he finished in his head.

She smiled a bit. "You just what?"

"You're… uh, showing too much skin… Can't you at least wear tights or something?" he asked.

"That would just ruin the whole look!"

"That skirt is pretty short, though…" he said uncertainly. If he'd said it to an un-amnesiac Jade, she would probably say "So you think I'm a tramp?" or something of the sort.

"Beck," she whined like a six year-old, giving him puppy dog eyes, her lips forming a little pout – all of which he found adorable and sexy at the same time.  
He was certain he would've gone weak in the knees had he been standing. "Fine."

"Thank you!" She hugged him quickly and picked up her bag. "Well, bye!"

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"Home," she said. "I walked. And I'm walking back."

"Wearing _that_?" he reprimanded. "Jade."

"What now?" she said, turning around and stomping her feet like a petulant child.

"Come on, I'll drive you home."

* * *

a/n: thanks so much yOU GUYS ILY! reviews are great, like cookies...


	6. Jade, A Crybaby?

"Um, Beck? This isn't the way to my hou…. What are we doing at the cemetery?"  
He smiled. "You liked it here."  
"Oh," Jade said. "I'll keep that in mind."  
"You remember when we first got here?" he asked.  
"Not quite," she responded truthfully.  
"Yeah… the doctor said you need to re-experience things to remember them," he said.  
"How am I going to do that?" she asked, frowning. "I don't remember _millions_ of things."  
"I'll help you, of course," he said, like it's the simplest thing in the world.  
She smiled warmly. "You better."  
"You know, I want you back so bad," he mused, looking anywhere but her. "But I think it wouldn't be the same as before."  
"I remember a lot about you. It's strange, but it's true. I remember why you live in the RV, and that you have this little whiteboard for your rules and all it says is 'wear pants often' and… yeah," Jade rambled.  
He grabbed her hand. "That's good to know, Jade. Wanna take a walk?"

* * *

Needless to say, everyone at Hollywood Arts was surprised the next day. The Wicked Witch of the West (well, who used to be the Wicked Witch of the West) just walked through the door wearing her new clothes. As soon as she strolled in, boys crowded around her like metals attracted to a magnet. Trina walked in next, talking loudly and animatedly.

"And you know what he said?" Trina asked. "He said I'm crazy!"  
"Well, you kinda are," Jade joked.  
Trina laughed. "You're so funny!"  
Behind them trailed a stressed Tori, walking like a zombie. She carried books on one arm and balanced a coffee tray on the other.  
"Hey Jade! Hey, Trina! And Tori! Hi!" Cat greeted them, jumping with her Jupiter boots on. "Oh, where's Beck?"  
"He slept in," Jade said. "He looked tired, so I didn't wake him up."  
She raised her eyebrows at the group's stares. "What?"  
André grinned. "How'd you know that he— Jade, did you sleep over?"  
"No..? I dropped by his RV this morning to return his shirt."  
"Aw! I mean… oh. Hehe… Anyway! You okay, Tor?" asked André.  
Tori looked at him and frowned. "No! I'm so stressed out with this whole fundraiser thing, and also Trina. And Jade!"  
"Me?" Jade asked, clipping a pink hair bow on her half-up half-down ponytail.  
"Yes, you!" Tori snapped. "You aren't answering my question! Have you picked a song for the show or not?!"  
"Hmm." Jade tapped her cheek with her pencil. "I don't know, I'm—"  
"Jade!" Tori grabbed the pencil and snapped it in half, then threw it down forcefully.  
To her (and everyone else's) surprise, Jade burst out sobbing and ran away. Trina and the boys that had gathered to gawk at Jade immediately followed, offering her tissues, a cup of coffee and even a car. Yes, a car.  
Tori's jaw dropped open. "Wha—Jade! Come back!"  
"We better call Beck," Robbie said.  
As if on cue, aforementioned guy walked in. "Hey, guys. What's up?"  
"Uh… JadejustcriedohGodIdon'tevenknow, we didn't do anything!" André said before dashing off.  
"So where's Jade?" Beck asked impatiently. "Who made her cry?"  
"I did," Tori admitted guiltily. "I made her cry!"  
"You?"  
"Me," Tori sighed.  
"Yeah, good thing those boys are trying to make her feel better!" Cat said, smiling.  
"What?"  
Cat giggled. "Those boys were buying stuff for her earlier! Oh, here comes Ja—"  
"Beck!" Jade cried, latching herself onto him.  
Beck wrapped an arm around her waist and stroked her hair. "Shh, it's okay."  
"It's s-so _awful_!" Jade sobbed.  
"What happened?"  
"Tori broke my pencil!"  
He was silent for a few seconds. _Seriously?_ he thought. This whole thing made him frustrated. Jade never cried in front of anyone but him (and Cat). He didn't want the whole world to know about this side of her. "It's okay, babe. You have lots more." He cringed and his friends held their breaths. He had gotten so used to calling her that, it came naturally. Jade didn't seem to notice, however.  
"Look! She threw it at me!" she cried, showing him an angry red mark on her leg. Beck pulled her closer and rubbed soothing circles on her back.  
A few seconds later, she spoke against his chest. "I want ice cream."  
"You hate ice cream," he mumbled into her hair.  
"I want it noooow."  
"Jade, I'm sorry I broke your pencil and threw it at you! It wasn't on purpose! I mean, breaking the pencil was, but I didn't mean to hurt you with it!" Tori said shrilly. "I'll get you a new one! Like a really special one! Oh, do you want some frozen yogurt? Ice cream? Come on, Jade, don't ignore me! Didn't you just say you wanted ice cream? Jade? Jadeeeee!"  
Jade started to walk away, but Tori dove after her. They both fell to the ground, and once again, Jade started crying.  
"Tori!" some cheerleaders chided. A couple of them helped Jade up and she was coaxed into the girls' bathroom with promises of low-fat ice cream, a touch-up, great lipstick and candy-sweet perfume.  
"B-but I was just trying to—ugh!" Tori whined. "We have got to do something!"  
"Didn't the doctor say she'll recover sooner if we recreate memories?" Robbie asked.  
"He did…" Tori said. "Guys, we have to do it!"  
"Already halfway there," Beck said with a small smile, remembering their conversations about what Jade remembers about him.  
"How does dinner tonight at Nozu sound?" Tori said.

* * *

a/n: sorry it's short :(((


	7. A New Weapon

a/n: hello! wow this is so awesome… okay thank you guys so much for the support, i appreciate it a lot! alsO DID YOU LOOK AT THE COVER? im sorry if you cant read it that well! It says… *clears throat* 'your mind may forget, but your heart will always remember.' EW IT'S SO SAPPY RIGHT I ACTUALLY WANT TO STAB MYSELF WITH RUSTY SCISSORS

lmao pls forgive me for making tons of mistakes, i write these things at ungodly hours… anyway, on with the story!

* * *

"Sushi, sushi, sushi!"

Jade rubbed her temples. "Um, Cat…"

"Ahh!" Cat bounced and bounced on the backseat, screaming shrilly. "Mr Purple, we're going to Nozu!"

"Cat?" Beck took a second to glance at the redhead through the rear-view mirror of his car. "You're giving Jade a headache."

"No, I'm okay," Jade said, seeing the frown on Cat's face.

"You sure? You look like you're about to punch my car window."

"Do I?" Jade asked, checking her reflection on the side mirror. "I had no idea. Sorry, I don't know what—"

"Don't say sorry!" Cat squeaked. "I'll stop."

Jade raised her eyebrows. "Okay."

**.**

André sighed, bringing his feet down to pedal Robbie's 'car of the future.' "Seriously?"

"Just one more street," Robbie said patiently. "Hey, what have you got for Jade?"

"What? Oh, some pictures from two years ago, and the song we recorded. You know, when I got wonky and fell in love with her. You?"

"I brought Rex with me. Also the scissors she threw at me when Rex called her a big fat meanie," Robbie said. "I want her to feel the 'strong emotions' that'll help her remember."

André squinted in confusion. "The 'strong emotion' being…?"

"Hate, of course."

"You poor thing."

**.**

"Step on it!" Trina shrieked.

"Trina! My ear!" Tori said just as loudly, following her sister's command, though they were almost over the speed limit. "Anyway, I was planning to invite everyone to our house, so we can show Jade some pictures and Slap vid—"

"You're being slow! I want to show Jade my new Fazzinis!" Trina squealed.

Tori furrowed her eyebrows. "You don't think this is weird?"

"Weird? Weird what? Hey, I want some pickles, we have to make a stop—"

"No!"

"We are making a stop," Trina said determinedly, pouncing on the wheel.

"Trina! Let – go!" Tori said, straining to push her sister off. "Fine, we'll make a quick stop!"

**.**

"Hi guys!" Trina said just as Tori opened her mouth, running over to her sister's group of friends. "I'm so excited, I love sushi, you know!"  
"Hey, Trina," Jade said.  
"Oh, Jade, you _have _to see this!" Trina squeaked, then showed Jade her red Fazzini shoes. "Fabulous, right?"  
"Totally!"  
"We can totes go shopp—"  
"_Anyway_," Tori said pointedly. "Let's go inside!"

The group walked inside the bar, ordering their food and looking for a place to sit.  
"Here," Trina said, walking over to a big booth. "We'll all fit in here!"  
Tori slid in, followed by Jade (much to her and everyone's confusion and surprise). "Uh… Jade, are you feeling okay?"  
Jade turned her head to look at her. "Of course. Why? Do you feel sick?"  
"I'm fine! Weren't you mad at me for the pencil thing? No offense, but… you aren't acting like a gank."  
"What's that supposed to mean?" Jade asked, looking like she's about to cry.  
"I'm just saying that before this, you were a—AAH, DON'T CRY!"  
"Good job, Tori," Rex said sarcastically.  
Tori buried her face in her hands. "Oh, what the chiz."

* * *

"Well, that plan backfired." Tori said frustratedly, slamming her locker shut.

André chuckled. "It'll be fine, Tor."

"No, it's not! You're only saying that 'cause you get along with her just fine!"

Their bickering was interrupted when Jade came up to them, a smile on her face. Beck followed her shortly after, wearing a yellow plaid shirt and jeans with his usual combat boots. He looked unhappy.

"Hi, guys!" Tori said, a little relieved to see Jade's wide smile. "Jade, are you upset about what I did last night?"

"What? Oh, about that… I almost forgot that, but you reminded me! Anyway, it's okay. I brought cookies!"

"Jade, are you… sick?" André asked, reaching out to feel her forehead.

She laughed. "No, silly!"

"I think you caught some of Cat's… virus," Tori said.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Cat protested. "I'm not sick!"

"Hey Beck, can you expl—Beck, are you okay?" She snapped her fingers in front of his face. "Hello? Earth to Beck!"

"Beckett!" Jade said after he didn't respond.

"Oh—oh, sorry, what was that?"

"You zoned out for a minute. You okay, man?" André asked.

"No," Beck sighed.

Jade frowned. "Oh no! Come on then, let's ask Lane if we can—"

"Yeah, come on," Beck said, grabbing her wrist. He dragged a befuddled Jade away to who knows where—well, everybody knows where—the janitor's closet.

The little basket Jade brought now sat in Robbie's arms. "Uh, guys?"

Tori furrowed her eyebrows. "I did not just see him kidnap her."

"Nuh-uh," André agreed. "We didn't see nothin'."

"Guys… Jade just – she made brownies."

Tori, André and Cat slowly turned to look at Robbie and the basket he held, yelling "_What?_" all at once.

"Gimme!" Tori grabbed the basket and stuffed a brownie in her mouth. "Mm, _thith tas'es goov!_"

"Even better than mine!" Cat gasped.

Robbie and André wearily grabbed one each, doubt etched on their faces.

"Are you sure these aren't poisoned?" Rex said, sniggering.

André grinned. "No way! Chiz, these are _good_ brownies!"

"You think she'll give me the recipe?" Robbie pondered aloud.

Tori laughed. "Maybe not… oh my God, these are great! I want more!"

Cat giggled. "I should ask Jadey to make red velvet cupcakes!"

* * *

"So, care to explain why you _kidnapped_ me?" Jade asked, crossing her arms.

Beck stood with his back to the door, so as to not let her escape. He sighed. "Jade, for the last time, I did not—you know what? Forget it. I need to talk to you about something. Tori and I—"

"Oh my God, you're going out?" Jade exclaimed. She couldn't help the strong surge of jealousy that coursed through her, but she smiled it away, determined not to let anything show.

"No! No, no, no," he said quickly. "Jade, we've just been—"

"I knew it! You and Tori, I always thought—" A wave of dizziness washed over Jade, and for a split-second all she could see is white. She sat down on the floor slowly, careful not to let him know. She finished faintly, "I always thought you looked… cute… together."

_Perfect little Tori Vega. Tori, Tori, Tori, it's always Tori – Tori this, Tori that_, Jade thought bitterly. _Wha—no, Tori's my friend, I should be happy for her…_

"Are you okay?" Beck asked, looking down at her concernedly.

"Yeah!" she lied. "It's the shoes. They're killing me! Oww…"

He chuckled. "Okay, Jade, I hope you're not—"

"No, not at all! I'm not mad. You said we were broken up, right? That means we're free to date other people," Jade said, her smile and her light tone disguising the hurt from the squeezing she felt in her heart.

Beck frowned. "Jade, can you please let me finish?"

"What else do you have to say?" she snapped. Then her eyes widened. "Oh my God, I'm sorry, I didn't—"

"Jade! I'm not going out with Tori. I was just about to tell you that we've been talking, and she's saying she wants you to sleep over at her house tonight, but she's afraid to ask. She thought you're mad at her for the incident last night."

She was silent for a moment. "Oh."

"Yep."

"Well, what were you gonna talk to me about?"

_I want you back_, he said – inside his head, of course. What he really said was, "Nothing, I'll tell you some other time. So, what, are you coming or…?"

"Yeah, sure! Now come on, we've got three minutes till the bell goes," Jade said, beaming at him and gently pulling him out of the way to push the door open.

* * *

Later that day, Cat made her way from the Grub Truck to her friends' usual table in the Asphalt Café, smiling. _Ooh, right! I have to ask Jadey if she wants to make cupcakes!_ "Hiiiii!"

"Hey, Little Red!" André said, his smile a little too wide.

Cat raised her eyebrows, confused. Then something in her mind clicked. _Oh, yeah! _she thought, remembering their conversation earlier.

"_So, Little Red," Andre said, putting a hand on her shoulders. "The recipe…"_

"_Recipe?" Cat asked._

"_You know, _the recipe! _Just making sure you won't forget," Robbie added._

_Cat smiled. "Oh! Okay, I'll ask Jade! Maybe at lunch? She'll have time to tell us then!"_

Cat set her tray down on the table and sat down next to her best friend. "Jadey! You wanna make cupcakes sometime?"

"Sure, Cat," Jade said with a small smile.

"Oh my God, yay! Also, can you make brownies too? Or you can tell me the recipe you used!"

Jade giggled. "Sorry, can't. It's super top-secret!"

Tori almost upchucked her orange juice. She had _never_ heard Jade giggle – heck, the girl hated giggling! _And 'super top-secret'?_ _Whoa, we really need to help her get her memories back_.

"How long is it again?" she whispered to Beck, referring to the time Jade would fully recover without their help.

"12 days," he answered.

"And without the memory boost?" she whispered a bit more quietly, not wanting to upset Jade.

"6 days or less. Depends."

Tori nodded and tried to get back on track of the conversation. They were currently forcing Jade's brownie recipe out of her.

"Well if you won't tell us, you'll have to make it for us every time!" Tori reasoned. "Think about how much of a bother that is."

"It's not that bad! Anything for a friend, right?"

"Beck," André said. "Help us, man!"

Beck only grinned in response. "Eh. I have them almost every other week, so…"

Jade gasped at the group's sudden outburst about how lucky he is. Her head ached a bit, and she wanted them to stop yelling. She frowned. Then had an _Aha!_ moment. She remembered the new weapon on her arsenal: crying. It seemed to get her anything she wanted. So she hid her face in her hands and cried crocodile tears, successfully ceasing the shouting.

Beck got up quickly. "Do you want coffee? I know you do – hold on, I'll get you one!"

"I'll get coffee-flavored ice cream!" Tori ran after him.

"Jadey, please don't cry! Wait, I'll get Mr Purple so he can cheer you up!" Cat said, looking panicked. She ran into the building.

"You want me to play you a song?" André asked. "Okay, okay, I'll get my keyboard!"

"Stop crying, please? I'll – I'll get rid of Rex if you want! Hang on, I'm gonna put him in my locker!"

"You'd do that for me?" Jade sniffled, ignoring Rex's indignant cry of 'traitor!'.

"Yeah! Yeah, I'll do it right now!" Robbie said before dashing away.

Jade took a peek between her fingers, making sure nobody's around to see, and dropped her hands, smirking. She grabbed Beck's coffee and took a sip. "Ah. Sweet baby Jesus, life is _good_."


	8. Well-armed!

Tori opened the door to her house and tossed the keys onto the coffee table. Jade followed her inside. "'Kay, so why am I here?"  
"We're having a sleepover!" Tori said. "Meaning we'll be watching movies, talking about boys, and other stuff… and also you need to choose a song for the fundraiser, and I have tons of things to show you. But for tonight, we'll settle with watching The Slap videos."  
"You talk too much. Just get some popcorn, I'll choose the movie."

When Tori came back from the kitchen holding a bowl with five bags of popcorn's worth (she refused to make only one bag of popcorn, knowing neither of them would want to get up during a movie), she found Jade curled up on the couch with a pillow clutched to her chest.  
"Hercules?" Tori asked.  
Jade looked away from the TV. "What? It's a good movie. Oh, great, popcorn."  
"Yep." Tori set the bowl down on the coffee table in front of them and sat beside Jade. She got comfortable – and then her phone rang. "Dammit!"  
"Answer it, it's probably Cat. She found out a new joke," Jade said through a mouthful of popcorn, her eyes glued to the screen, a hand raised to her mouth.  
"Okay." Tori grabbed her phone and stood up, walking back to the kitchen. "Hey, Cat."  
"Oh my gosh, Tori, I have to tell you a joke!"  
"Okay, go for it!" Tori replied just as enthusiastically.  
"How does an octopus go to war?" Cat asked, giggling.  
"Um, how?"  
"Well-armed!" Cat almost yelled, before bursting into another fit of laughter.  
Tori chuckled. "That's… um, really funny!"  
"Oh, I have to go, my brother's stuck under the sink again! Bye Tori!" Cat said before hanging up.  
Tori was about to put her phone back in her pocket when André called, and they ended up having a one-hour long conversation. She walked back into the living room to find the movie was almost over. "_What?_"  
"Yeah, you were gone that long," Jade said monotonously. "And now you have to make more popcorn."  
"Seriously, how much walking will I have to do?" Tori took the bowl from Jade's outstretched arm and trekked back to the kitchen.

**.**

"Okay, so let me start by telling you that you absolutely hated me and—" Tori said.  
"Still do."  
Tori looked horrified.  
"Kidding. What were you gonna say?"  
"Anyway, nobody knew why. Except maybe Beck. Oh, yeah, Beck. So, I'm gonna tell you this straight-up: you were easily jealous. And you're kind of possessive of him. I'm not saying it's a bad thing though, if I were you I'd probably be the same, you kn—"  
"Here, I'll give you this dollar if you get to the point."  
"Hey, you're becoming more and more like the old Jade each day. And thanks for the dollar. Okay I'll get to the point – there's no point. Let's watch some videos!" Tori opened her Pearbook and typed in the URL to The Slap.  
"I have better things to do with my life than wait for the stupid page to load," Jade groaned after a few seconds of staring at a white screen.  
Tori herself was annoyed at the slow Internet connection. "Like what?"  
"Sleep. Or eat."  
"Let me tell you a story," Tori said before launching into a story about her time at Hollywood Arts with their friends, starting at day one.

**.**

"And so, that was the story of – Jade, are you sleeping?!" Tori screeched.  
"No, as boring as that was."  
"Good, 'cause all the tabs loaded! I knew our Wi-Fi's still trusty," Tori cheered. "Okay, let's watch Beck's profile video."  
Jade yawned. "Why?"  
"Because you're in it. And, you know, you need to remember these little things. 'Cause I know you're feeling… _stuff_ for Beck and I bet you're confused."  
"Yeah, okay, whatever."  
Tori played both of the _Beck and Jade's Relationship Advice_ videos, Beck's profile video, all of the _Jade With Tots _and _What I Hate_ videos, and the video of Beck and Jade's drive-by acting exercise.  
"I hope that made you feel… strong emotions."  
Jade rolled her eyes. "Can you _not _say that again?"  
"Soz. Oh my God, we're like BFFs right now!" Tori said before popping a marshmallow in her mouth.  
"…I'm going home. This sleepover is over."

* * *

The next day, Jade woke up in her bed feeling peculiar. She felt different for some reason she couldn't place a finger on.

_Must be something to do with recovery_, she thought and shrugged off the strange feeling.

She got up, showered, cleaned her teeth and got dressed – this time with her old clothes– all black and comfortable. She couldn't find it in herself to put on tons of makeup, so she settled for a cherry lip balm, mascara and simple winged eyeliner. She curled her unstreaked hair, standing in front of her big mirror, and slid her feet in her combat boots. She craned her neck to look at the pink butterfly clock that Cat had given her, and then remembered that she had yet to buy batteries. She made a mental note and finished styling her hair.

As she descended the stairs, she heard yelling from her stepmother and her father.

"God, James, we can't just annul our marriage 'cause you don't want me anymore!" her stepmother screamed. "I'm not a goddamn toy!"  
"No, Emma," her father said, this time clearly and calmly. "Look, we've only been married for nine months and we never consummated it. And it just… it never worked out. And this is what's best for my family. We want to start again."  
_Start again?_ Jade felt happiness course through her whole being, but her little celebration was interrupted in a second.  
"So, what, me and Amber aren't your family?" Emma shrieked.  
"Amber isn't even my biological daughter!"  
"Emma… you know, he's right. It _is _what's best. It's for everyone's good."  
Jade paused mid-step. Her mother was downstairs? She thought it screwed up the law of physics for Emma to occupy the same room as the first wife. She took the steps three at a time but hesitated, coming to a halt a few steps from the living room.  
"Please, Julianna, don't act like a saint," she heard Emma scoff. "You _abandoned_ them."  
Jade chose the moment to enter the room, growing irritated at the woman. Her father nodded towards her to acknowledge her presence. Emma managed a thin-lipped fake smile. "Hello."  
"Morning, honey," her mother said with a kind smile, unlike the one her stepmother wore. "Would you like me to make some breakfast?"  
"That'd be great, Mom."  
Julianna sent her ex-husband a look over her shoulder as she led their daughter into the kitchen.

**.**

"What's happening?" Jade asked, staring at her plate of eggs and bacon.  
Her mother leaned on the breakfast bar, her elbows on the surface. "They're splitting up."  
"Oh." Jade blinked. "Is it bad that I don't feel bad? It may have been me driving myself insane, but I honestly felt like she just married Dad for his money. And I hated her dog."  
Julianna sighed. "I don't know, Jadelyn. Now, go—"  
"Jade."  
"Okay, Jade," she laughed. "Eat your breakfast. You're late, you know. Beck stopped by to pick you up, but you looked so tired so I didn't wake you."  
"Wha—_Mom!_"

**.**

Jade stumbled out of her car rather ungracefully then shut the door and locked it. She began to walk towards the school building, but noticed she wasn't holding her bag. She yelled out in frustration, realizing she'd forgotten it in her car.

"You okay?" André asked with a good-natured smile. It seemed like he ran late, too.  
"Woah, what's with the new look?" Jade joked.  
"Ah, you know… another Hope," he said, explaining the expensive clothes he wore.  
"Oh no," Jade said, already reaching for her bag in the passenger seat. "Want some help breaking up with her?"  
"I actually do," André admitted. "I'd ask you if you're willing to pretend you're the girl I 'cheat' on Hope with, but somehow I get the feeling Beck won't be happy."  
"Why won't he be hap—I mean, why don't you ask Tori?"  
"Yeah, I'll do that." André grinned and took off, calling his thanks over his shoulder (and Jade didn't notice).  
"Because I'm sure Tori would love to help you, she always helps everyone. Am I right? André? Hey, André…?" said Jade, turning around. "Aaaand I'm alone."  
She shut her car door and locked it, slinging her bag over her shoulder.  
"Hey, Jade! Oh, you're wearing your usual clothes again," Tori said, walking over to her and bouncing up and down. "What's up?"  
"What's with everyone being late too?" Jade wondered aloud.  
"Oh, well, I was late because I had no ride. Trina wouldn't give me one 'cause she's begging me for singing lessons and I said no."  
"Why don't you just do it? It'll help her a lot," Jade said. "No offense."  
"None taken, and I don't want to 'cause I'll just get frustrated! She's hopeless! But I also don't want to be late everyday until I get my license, which will probably never happen!" Tori wailed.  
"I'll try and help her," Jade said awkwardly. "She'll have to drive you. So, you know… don't cry or something."  
Tori smiled at Jade's attempt to make her feel better. "Okay. Thanks, Jade! Come on, let's go inside."

**.**

Jade pressed the doorbell to her house, knowing that knocking would be useless. It didn't make the annoying doorbell noise.

_Uh-oh… it's broken._

She peeked in through a gap in the curtains covering the big window next to the door. She saw her little brother playing his video games, ignoring the notebook and pencil on the couch that just screamed out 'UNFINISHED HOMEWORK.' He was in the middle of stuffing his face with cookies. She tapped the window and waited patiently.  
His gaze finally landed on her. "Hi Jade!"  
"Open the door, Captain Underpants."  
He laughed as he unlocked the door and pushed it open.  
"'Kay, go play your video games." Jade ruffled his hair. She slid off her combat boots and walked into the kitchen.  
"Hey, Mom."  
Julianna turned around, oven mitts in hand. "Oh, hello, Jade! I didn't hear you come in."  
"The doorbell's not working, but Justin saw me so he opened the door."  
"There it is. I knew I forgot something. I hope you're hungry, we're having some family pot pie."  
"Oh, I am."  
Her father walked in, pulling at his tie. "How are my girls doing?"  
"Miffed. Didn't make it to first period, and I'm starving," Jade answered, looking at the wall clock on the homey cream-coloured walls of the their kitchen-and-dining room. Her mother chuckled and placed a plate bearing her dinner.  
"That's fine, Jade," James said. "We want to have a talk with you."  
Jade nodded and proceeded to eat. After a moment's silence, she looked up to find her parents staring at her. "What? I can eat and listen at the same time, you know."  
They smiled, noticing her _slight_ change in behaviour – she was acting more like the old Jade little by little.  
"Well, Emma and I are annulling our marriage," her father started.  
"Yeah, I figured," Jade said. "'Cause you want to be with Mom. Right?"  
"Right."  
"After dinner, I was thinking of showing you our home videos," Julianna said.  
"And then we'll watch a movie," he added.  
Jade nodded. "Family night it is."

* * *

a/n: yah i think it's safe to say this story is AU, but not wonky-AU. it's gonna have like fifteen chapters or something, and basically would revolve around how Jade's life changed since the accident. so yeah. sorry if this is a crappy chapter, and i apologise for any mistakes you might have spotted.

and oh my god ok i got a review from **ForeverAndAlwaysShipping **saying chapter 7 was like this story called _If Jade Were Off Coffee _by **midnight craving**… i just finished reading it like two hours before i wrote this chapter and author's note, and hOLY FRICK IT DOES SEEM LIKE I PLAGIARIZED (?) THE AUTHOR'S WORK OR SOMETHING BUT I SWEAR I DIDN'T I HAVEN'T EVEN READ THE STORY UNTIL 2 HOURS AGO OMG AM I IN TROUBLE hELP ME HELP HELP HELP

anyway, how do you guys feel about a Bade version of the book **Thirteen Reasons Why**? Leave a review with your opinion!


	9. Snappy Gets Traumatized

"Oh my God, I have Ebola!" Jade cried childishly with a nasally voice.  
"How do you even know what that is?"  
"I don't know, I just saw it on WebMD! Oh my God, oh my God, I'm going to die–"  
Beck sighed. "Jade, calm down. It's just a cold."

After rehearsing for the upcoming fundraiser concert, Beck and Jade went out for ice cream (Jade may or may not have had eleven cones) and about an hour later, aforementioned girl started sneezing and coughing violently.

So now they're in a drugstore.

"I won't calm down, I'm dying! Take me to a hospital!"  
"Shh, Jade, people are staring…" Beck whispered. It was true – people skirted their way around them, some young kids looking at them with weird expressions, and the older people looked on with amusement.  
"I don't care, I'm gonna die!"

He got the prescribed cough medicine then pulled her out of the shop, but not before she got Hello Kitty lozenges for her throat. The cashier, an old woman (Lizzie, according to her nametag) smiled at him, saying, "She's a special one." And he had to smile back and nod.

The drive to his RV was quiet, if you don't count Jade's coughs and sniffles.

"Okay," Beck said as he pushed her inside his humble abode, "You have to take this. And quick."  
There was a long moment of silence before Jade finally says, "I don't wanna."  
"Come on, Jade, we can't have you sick on the day of the concert!"  
"No, it tastes bad!"  
"Okay, I'm gonna count to three. One… two… two and a half… three." he sighed. "Jade, just take the damn medicine."  
"Nooo!"  
"Jadelyn August West!"  
He received a death glare in response. He knew she resented her name.  
Nevertheless, she mimicked his tone. "Beckett James Oliver!"  
"Just take the cough medicine!"  
"No!"  
He grunted in frustration. "Well, then… you leave me no choice. Sorry, Jade."

**.**

After what must've been twenty minutes, Jade ended up pinned to the floor, with Beck's legs on either side of her.  
"Maybe if you drink the medicine, you wouldn't feel like you have Ebola!"  
Jade let out a low whine, like a puppy.  
"So, are you gonna take it or not?"  
No response.  
"Jade!"  
"Okay, okay!"  
He stood up and helped her to her feet, taking the medicine cup out and pouring the cough syrup in it. He held it out to her. "Here you go."  
Jade took a look at the cup and gasped. "Oh my God, I'm not sick anymore! I don't have to drink medicine, yay!"  
He looked at her sceptically until a cough gave her away. "Nice try. Come on, just take it. Look, it's cherry flavored!"  
They ended up having a silent staring contest, until Beck sighed and put the bottle and medicine cup down on the small table.  
"You know what? Whatever, I don't even care," he said, knowing she'll end up taking it anyway. "I'm going to Andre's, we have stuff to do."  
"Bye!" was all Jade said, getting comfortable in his bed. Beck sighed and walked out of the RV.

_Well, he's gone… what do I do?_ Jade wondered._ I don't wanna go home._

She jumped on his bed, tried to tie her hair into pigtails, washed her makeup off… just about whatever she can do to keep herself from being bored. Her throat really itched and she was sick of blowing her nose… She grabbed the small medicine cup and the bottle and sniffed it.

_Okay, how do I do this?_

* * *

Beck trudged through the gates and walked down the path to his RV, hearing Jade's obnoxiously loud singing.

"LOVE WILL REMEMBER YOUUUU, AND LOVE WILL REMEMBER MEEEE…"

He came to a sudden stop at the door when he heard some _things_ between coos and death threats.

"_Here, fishy fishy, come to mommy! …Ugh, you little bitch, get in here!_"

He pulled the door open and was greeted by the sight of Hercules playing on DVD and Jade hovering over his fish tank, trying to grab his pet fish. "Jade!"  
She pulled her hand out, along with the fish, and turned to face him. "Hiii!"  
Beck yelped and ran over, swatting her hand and causing his pet fish to fall back into the tank.  
"Hey, what the heck? I was gonna eat that!" Jade said angrily.  
"Jade, you can't eat Snappy!"  
She looked extremely confused, in a cute way. "I can't?"  
"You can't," he confirmed.  
He took in her appearance – her hair up in high pigtails, no makeup on, and she was wearing nothing but her underwear and his Rolling Stones shirt that was way too big for her. It was sexy and adorable at the same time – but he couldn't tell her that.  
"Screw you, I do what I want," she said, dipping her hand in the fish tank again.  
"Wha—oh my God!" Beck grabbed a box of unflavoured ice-lollies from his freezer in a desperate attempt to stop her from eating his fish. "Here, eat this instead!"  
She grabbed the box in delight, making him sigh in relief.  
"Wash your hands first."  
She obeyed and washed her hands in the bathroom, singing a nursery rhyme. She came out and wiped her hands on his shirt.  
"Now, did you drink the med—" he picked up the bottle of cough syrup on the table, finding it surprisingly lighter. He looked at her, horrified. "This is empty! Jade, what the hell?"

_Well, that explains why she's acting high as a kite._

She wasn't paying attention, so he took the box of ice-lollies from her.  
"What the heck? Give me back my babies! I want to eat my babies!"  
"Oh, God. I think this is dangerous. You're mentally unstable. Let me call your mom."  
"No!" Jade screamed. "I want my babies! My yummy babies!"  
He sighed and pulled his phone out of his pocket. He dialled her mom, and after a few rings, she picked up.  
"Hello?"  
"Hi madam, would you be interested in taking care of a girl who's high on cough syrup?" he held out the phone to Jade, who was still crying about her 'babies.' He gave the box back to her, effectively shutting her up.  
"Well… good luck, Beck," she laughed.  
He chuckled. "Okay, Mrs West. I'll take care of her."  
"Thank you for this." Julianna smiled on her end of the line. She'd quickly grown fond of Beck ever since she first saw the boy, and trusted him with her daughter.  
"Oh, it's no problem. Have a good night!"  
"Good night, dear," she said, hanging up.  
"Hey Jade…" Beck smirked.  
"Hi!" she said happily, distracted. She looked up from her half-eaten ice-lolly and flashed him a big smile. Little did she know it's being caught on camera.  
"What's that on your hair, Miss West?"  
She giggled. "Pigtails."  
"You look very beautiful."  
"Thank you for saying that," she said, curtseying. She sat down on the floor with an 'oops!' and giggled. She turned her attention back to the movie, singing along. "It's too cliché, I won't say I'm in love!"  
He laughed. "Are you okay?"  
"Yeah!"

"Beck, I love you," she blurted out after a few seconds of silence, yawning.  
"You're high," he said, but a smile spread across his features. "Brush your teeth and go to bed."  
"Kaykay!"  
He chuckled to himself, glad he got the entire thing on video.

* * *

a/n: sorry about this omg this is a filler because the plot bunnies got lost and i didnt want you guys to wait very long! but pls help me find the lil plot bunnies let's lure them back with reviews ty my babies i love you


	10. Insight

a/n: this chapter's bordering on M for some…stuff. '**bordering**' cause i've never written smut lmao

and sorry if this chapter sucks, i'm sick and it was 3am and i really can't find the plot bunnies.

* * *

Somehow, they had ended up tangled together. And he's completely fine with it. He missed this. He missed _her_. He'd memorized every little detail – the long eyelashes almost caressing the apples of her cheeks, the scarce, faded freckles lightly scattered across her cheekbones and the bridge of her nose, the marks from her piercings, even the way her lips curved – he knew it all well by heart, but waking up next to her never got tiring. And just now, he thought he loved seeing her in the soft, dim light of dawn.

A soft sigh escaped her lips and her eyes fluttered open, showing the greyish-blue orbs that he loved so much.

He smiled. "Hey."

_Thud._

He scrambled to a sitting position and leaned towards the side of the bed that Jade fell off of. "Oh my God, are you okay?"

"Do I look like I'm okay?" she snapped. "Idiot."

He just blinked. He heard her mumble something along the lines of 'this is embarrassing' and 'stupid beck and his stupid smile and stupid morning voice.'

"Looks like you're back," he said, successfully suppressing a smile. "Like… you're actually _Jade_."  
Jade rolled her eyes. "_Congratu-fucking-lations_, it only took you 2 minutes to figure that out! Want a trophy?"  
"Whoa, okay, roll back the attitude. It's only almost 7, you can go back to bed," he told her, grabbing her hand and pulling her up.  
"Ow!" she winced. She sat up from her comfortable (she's going to deny that if you asked her) position beside Beck. "Your phone just imprinted itself in my spine!"  
He grabbed his pearphone and waited for her to settle back on his side. "Wanna know how you ended up here?"  
"Enlighten me."  
"You got, like, kinda high off cough syrup. And you traumatized Snappy. You tried to _eat _him!"  
She laughed, her eyes never leaving the glow in the dark stickers on the ceiling of his RV. "He deserved it. He's seen both of us naked – heck, he watched us fuck."  
He laughed. "He's also seen you cry over ice lollies last night."  
"We should do drugs and have sex," she said out of the blue.  
"Too early," he chuckled. "And I don't do drugs."  
"Oh yeah…" she said thoughtfully. "Get me some coffee."  
"Yes, ma'am," he said, pushing himself up and sauntering over to the tiny space where he made coffee for him and Jade every time she stayed the night, which was ninety-five percent of the time. Jade lay on her stomach with her chin on the palm of her hands, elbows digging into the sheets. She hummed a gentle version of _The One That Got Away_ softly as she watched him work.

He gave her the much-awaited coffee in her favorite mug. "In other news, you said you love me."

She sat up across him, careful not to spill anything. "No way."

"I have proof," he said, carelessly setting his coffee on top of a book and dangling his pearphone in front of her face.

"Jesus, that's bright," she said as she put down her coffee and squinted at the screen. Her confused expression morphed into a mortified one. "Nope. No way. I really was _smashed_." _And I looked like a baby prostitute_, she said to herself.

"But you said it, and we know how brutally honest you are, high or not. Plus you always say I have amazing abs, and rad hair…"

"God, if only your dick was as big as your ego," she sighed dramatically.

"If it was, I wouldn't be able to walk around."

Jade raised an eyebrow.

"And neither would you, for that matter," he added.

"I think I'll take that risk…" she said alluringly. He smiled, staring at her lips. She smirked and pushed him down on his bed, straddling him and bending over to kiss him.

**.**

"I love you."

Jade hummed something incoherent in response and twisted around in his arms.

"What was that?" he asked teasingly.

"I said I love you too," she said, reaching up to run her fingers through his hair.

"So we're officially back together?" he asked.

"Yeah."

He pressed a kiss to her forehead. "I'm really happy."

"And I'm really hungry."

"Let's go get breakfast, then," he said, smiling.

* * *

Anne Oliver pressed her cheek on the cold window, sighing. "It's Saturday. Luke, think we could go out today? I saw those really lovely pair of shoes on sale…"  
Her husband chuckled. "Sure, honey."  
Anne raised an eyebrow upon seeing two figures make their way out of her son's RV. "Looks like she spent the night… They're up early."  
"_They?_"  
"Beck and Jade."  
"Ah. I never really did like her. I mean, he moved out of the house because of her."  
"Well, it's more like 'he moved out of the house _for _her' in my opinion."  
"Same thing."  
"No," Anne argued, but not aggressively. "You asked him to break up with her – remember? He said no, and you said, 'as long as you live under my roof, you live by my rules.' They were thirteen at the time."  
"Yes, I remember. But—"  
"He spent his savings at the time for that RV and moved out, so he could have his own rules all so he could continue dating her, because he _loved_ her. And she didn't ask for that. Though I could see she loves him just as much as he loves her. I think they're meant for each other."  
"Oh, don't delude yourself," Lucas said. "Come on, they're only seventeen. Who finds their soul mate at seventeen? Besides, they're polar opposites."  
"We got married at nineteen. And _we_ are opposites, too."  
"But we were absolutely sure about _our _love."  
Anne sighed. "There is no winning with you. But I love you nonetheless. Make us some breakfast?"

After he had gone, she thought back to _that _day.

"**Why are you so against her?" thirteen year-old Beck said frustratedly, glaring at his parents.  
**"**We just think she's bad for you!" Lucas had said. "She's stubborn and temperamental."  
**"_**He**_** thinks she's bad for you," Anne interjected. She was fond of her son's girlfriend.  
****Her husband paid her no mind. "You're going to end it with her, you hear?"  
**"**What? No! I won't do that." Beck looked at his mother pleadingly. "Mom, please. I'm a hundred percent sure I'll never feel this way with someone else ever again. I… I love her."  
****Anne could see the emotion in his eyes, and she ached for him. She opened her mouth to speak, but Lucas interrupted her.  
**"**As long you live under my roof, you live by my rules," Lucas said sternly.  
****Anne frowned.**_** That's not right,**_** she thought. "Honey—"  
**"**That's not fair!" Beck said indignantly. "I don't want to live under your roof, then! I don't want to live by your stupid rules."  
****His parents furrowed their eyebrows in confusion.**

**Later that day, Jade yelled at Beck the entire time he was moving his things to the new RV while his parents (secretly) watched them and eavesdropped from the living room window. Anne was sure Jade's voice could be heard from five blocks away.  
**"**Are you crazy?!" Jade fumed. "Put all of that back **_**right now**_** and say sorry to your dad! Beck, I'm serious!"  
****He put a box down and walked over to her, clasping her hands in his. "No. I love you. Like, a lot. Don't tell me you don't love me back."  
**"**No, no, I – I love you too," Jade blurted out quickly. "I love you so much, but—"  
**"**Then it's settled, there's no way we're breaking up," he said, booping her nose with a wide smile.  
****Jade looked unsure. "It's gonna be really hard for you, though. I just… I don't want to **_**kindasortaruinyourlife**_**."  
**_**Who knew the resident bad girl had a soft side?**_** Anne thought, amused.  
****Beck laughed. "No, if anything, you made my life better. And I'll be fine."  
"Beck, you're thirteen!" Jade said, now frustrated.  
"So are you, and you've done worse things. What's your point?" Beck asked. Seriously, it's like the roles have reversed. He was usually the one reasoning out to keep her from doing stupid things.  
****Jade threw her hands up in exasperation. "Fine, Beckett. Do what you want."  
****He only smiled and kissed her cheek. "You gonna help me or not?"  
**"**I'm helping because I want to," she said, her expression unreadable.  
**"**You're adorable," he laughed.  
****She glared at him. "Say that again and I'll set you on fire."  
**"**How can they even stand being with each other for longer than five minutes?" Lucas blurted out. "They're obviously not—"  
**"**They love each other, sweetie. Look at them, they go together like bacon and eggs." Anne swooned. "I'm confident that this is true love. I mean, have you ever seen thirteen year-olds act this way?"  
****Her husband rolled his eyes. "Whatever you say."**

Anne smiled to herself. "Looks like I was right. Again."

* * *

Luke descended the stairs slowly and quietly, listening intently to the sounds coming out from his kitchen. Knowing it's his son with that girlfriend of his, he grimaced. The girl tried to kill him – with a Rottweiler! Outrageous. He reached the end of the staircase and made his way to the kitchen, leaning on the doorway. The two had their backs to him, standing in front of the big window. Beck had an arm around his girlfriend's waist.  
"This is great," he said. "Can you imagine doing this in our own house, when the kids—"  
"Whoa, keep back, Rover," Jade teased.  
"So you think we'll get married and have kids?"  
"What? I never sai—"  
"If we have a girl, we should call her Jessica or something like that. It has to start with J, like your name."'  
"Okay, stop. Jessica is an ugly name."  
"If we have a boy, his name's gotta start with a B. Like Brandon."  
"Sounds like an asshole-jock-ish name."  
"Bryce? Brayden?"  
"Beck, I assure you that we're not having children anytime soon. Please stop talking," she said, resting her head on his shoulder.

Beck smiled at her, the kind of smile Luke was all too familiar with – the smile that just said pure happiness and love.

_Uh-oh. This one really is different_. Luke almost jumped out of his skin when he felt a hand on his shoulder.  
Anne laughed quietly. "That's what's taking so long. Spying on them, hm?" She walks past him into the kitchen, acting surprised upon seeing her son and his girlfriend. "Hello!"  
Jade just smiled a one-dimpled smile. Anne noted the messy ponytail and the scrunched flannel shirt that obviously belonged to Beck.  
"Hey, Mom. Dad." Beck said.  
"Someone's in a good mood." Anne said with a smile.  
"Yeah, well…"  
"How have you been, Beck? Haven't heard from you in a long time," Luke said.  
"Dad, I live 30 feet away from you."  
Anne laughed, turning to her son's girlfriend. "How are you, honey?"  
"Fine, thank you," Jade said with a small smile. "How are you?"  
"Oh, we're great! You guys wanna have dinner with us tonight?"  
"Sure, Mom."  
"Good! We're going out for a bit, you guys watch the house."

* * *

"What do you mean you can't go?" Tori's voice rang out.  
"Babe, turn off your speakerphone," Jade groaned, on the brink of throwing her boyfriend's phone at the wall. She put her legs sideways atop Beck's.  
"It's not on speaker," he said.  
Jade grabbed the pearphone. "Listen, Vega. When we say we can't go, it means _we can't go_."  
"Wha—is this Jade? What are you doing in there? And _Vega_, seriously, when did you—?"  
"Can I hang up on her?" Jade asked, looking at Beck.  
"No, don't hang up!" Tori squeaked. "Oh, it's been _days__—_you've recovered! Yay! Wanna go to Nozu and celebr—"  
"Bye!" Jade ended the call and stuffed the phone under a throw pillow.  
"We gotta go," Beck said. "We have practice."  
"We also have dinner with your parents."  
"Why do you suddenly like my parents?"  
"I just don't want to be around those idiots!" Jade said, referring to their group of friends.  
Beck knew better than to push it. "Well, okay."  
"Look, if you really want to spend time with Vega—"  
"Here we go again."  
"Well maybe if you weren't such a flirt all the time, I'd actually—"  
Beck was confused. _Did I flirt with other girls?_ "What are you talking about? I don't flirt with anyone."  
He didn't realize he was 'flirting' with other girls; he only talked to them because he's friendly. The idea of wanting anyone who wasn't Jade was such a foreign concept that it never registered to him that the girls he talked to might have thought that they had a chance with him.  
Jade sighed. "Right. Okay."  
"Don't you trust me?"  
"No, I do! I just don't trust, you know, _them_."  
"Is this that 'I can only be friends with ugly girls' rule again?" he frowned, realizing she was insecure. "This is gonna be really sappy, but Jade, no one compares to you. You're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen. You're prettier than any other girl, and I'm not gonna dump you for anyone else. Sorry I don't ever realize it seems like I flirt with other girls, because… well, I guess being with anyone who isn't you just isn't a familiar notion. I really can't imagine being in love with anyone else. So… yeah. I love you so much, okay?"  
She smiled softly. "I love you too."

* * *

"Boy, that was quite the dinner. So, did I change your opinion on Jade?" Anne asked.  
Luke climbed into bed beside his wife. "Eh, probably."  
"Have you ever seen our son so happy? I mean… that's what matters to me. Jade makes him genuinely happy—and the way they look at each other!"  
"Anne, go to bed."  
She sighed in contentment. "Ah, I wonder what our grandchildren would look like."  
"_Anne!_"

* * *

a/n: so yeah i think you can tell what this was about. and, um, i apologise for it.


	11. Cat's Plan

A loud banging on the back of Tori's car made her hit the brakes. She lurched forward a little and thanked God she put her seatbelt on.  
"Tori!" Cat yelped, stopping and bending over to catch her breath.  
_She ran two whole streets after me?_ Tori thought disbelievingly. _Why didn't I notice?_ "Oh my God, Cat!"  
"You gotta come back to the school!" she pleaded, circling the car once before opening the door to the passenger seat and climbing in.  
"What? Why?"  
"Beck and Jadey are having a really big fight and I'm scared!" she whimpered.  
"Already?" Tori asked. "They just got back together two days ago!"  
"Hurry, Tori!"  
"Okay, okay, put your seatbelt on," she told the hysterical redhead before starting the car.

The drive took less than five minutes, and Tori pulled up in the parking lot near the Asphalt Café. She and Cat scrambled out quickly, just in time to witness the aforementioned couple's fight come to an end.

"I can't believe you!" Beck shouted. Tori had never seen him this angry before.

Jade looked like she was about to cry, but her jaw was set and she stood her ground stubbornly. "If you would just liste—"

"What else can you say, Jade? Why should I believe it?" Beck yelled, turning his back on Jade.

"Let me explain!" Jade yelled back frustratedly, her eyes welling up with unshed tears.

He turned around. "Fine. Why did you do it? Why would you lie to me?"

"I— I… It's because…" Jade stuttered. _I love you_, she finished in her head. She blinked quickly, furiously. _I can't do this_. She can't say it in front of the whole school, because she didn't want to be percepted as weak.

Beck shook his head and walked away. Andre, after a moment's hesitation, followed him. Robbie did too. Cat glared at the crowd that had gathered to watch and Tori watched them disperse. After that, she and Tori stood quietly watching Jade. Her shoulders were slumped in defeat and a stray tear rolled down her cheek. She swayed slightly and a sob escaped her lips.

Cat refused to believe it. Her heart broke at the sight of her best friend trying desperately to keep it together. She took a step forward. "Jadey…"

And Jade let herself fall to her feet, her face buried in her hands.

* * *

"So Jade lied about remembering?" Tori asked. She tossed a can of Wahoo punch at Andre.

"That's what Beck told me," Andre said, catching the soda can.

"Why would she do that?" Tori asked.

Andre shrugged in response and both just walked around the corridors quietly, until Tori broke the silence again. "This is bad. The fundraiser concert is tomorrow and they were supposed to sing together. It took a lot of convincing on my part!"

"Well, we can't do anything about it," Andre said with a frown. "I don't want to get involved like last time."

"Beck's your best friend! And Jade… well, she doesn't hate you!"

"We're friends," Andre said proudly.

Tori frowned. "Not fair. What did you have that I don't?"

"Time," Andre told her vaguely. "Come on, let's go practice. It's up to the two of them whether they're coming or not."

They walked to the Blackbox Theater in comfortable silence, just taking in the peace and quiet before they meet with their batty friends. Tori opened the theater door to find Cat and Robbie waiting inside.

"Hey," Robbie greeted.

Cat approached them and hugged Tori. "Hi!"

"Um, hi? Are you guys feeling okay?"

"Uh…" Robbie started hesitantly. "Cat—"

"I'm sick! I can't rehearse!" Cat said dramatically.

Tori gaped at her. "What?"

"I need a day off!"

"Cat, no!"

"Please, Tori? I really need it!"

"What do you mean day off? You all missed practice the other day! The fundraiser is tomorrow!" Tori screeched.

"I was butterfly-sitting," Robbie reasoned. "Calm down, Tori."

"Don't have a rack attack." Andre laughed at his own joke.

Tori looked at him, puzzled. "What?"

"It's an alternative phrase for 'calm your tits'," Robbie explained. "There's also 'give that chest a rest', 'hakuna your tatas', an—"

"Yeah, I get it!" Tori sighed and spun to face Cat. "Fine, you can have a day off. Only because you're good."

Cat hugged the half-Latina and squeezed tightly. "Yay! Thank you, Tori!"

She had to make a plan, and she had to put it into action.

* * *

a/n: wow what a plot twist!1!

sorry it's short, i'm really stressed with school and stuff... review pls? they are my sunshine


	12. Cat Tries to Fix Beck and Jade

"Jadey! Jadey, help me!"

"What the—Cat?" Jade's voice sounded heavy with sleep. "I thought I blocked your number!"

"I need help!" Cat cried into her phone, faking distress. "Please go to my house now!"

No response. She heard Jade's breathing on the other end of the line. _Is she sleeping?_ It was only seven pm!

"Lemonjade?" Cat said frantically. Still no answer. "JADEY!"

"I'm up, I'm up!" Jade yawned.

"Help me!"

"What happened?" she asked, her voice laced with worry for a moment.

_Uh-oh… think quick!_ Cat thought, panicked. "My neighbor's dog broke into my house! Hurry, Jade!"

"Again? Hold on, I'll be there in ten," Jade sighed, hanging up before Cat could ask to be unblocked and swear that she'll never call again to talk about low-fat crepes.

Once she heard the click, Cat smiled in satisfaction and dialled Beck's number. He picked up after a few rings, and the background noise of his RV hit Cat's ears. She squeaked out, "Beck!"

"Hey, Cat. Sup?"

"I accidentally swallowed a house key! Help me, Strawbecky!"

Beck laughed. "Again? Hang on, I'm coming. Don't try anything, okay? And _please_ don't call me Strawbecky again."

"Just come help me!" Cat said shrilly and hung up the phone. She got up and raced down the stairs. _This is gonna be fun! Yay!_ she thought, running into the kitchen. She got out the baking tools and the ingredients for her favorite cupcakes and made sure everything was in place. She let out a small scream when she heard the doorbell, then giggled about how silly she was.

As she predicted, Beck arrived first.

"Okay, did you drink anything? Are you feeling okay?" he asked, his tone taking on a fatherly one.

"Yeah!" Cat giggled and pulled him inside her house before shutting the door. "I didn't swallow a key, silly!"

His face scrunched up in thought. "You didn't?"

"Nope!" Cat laughed, dragging him to her kitchen, where some baking supplies were already prepared. "I want you to make cupcakes with me!"

"Oh, Cat," he sighed. "I'm really bus—"

"Please? I'm home alone!" Cat interrupted. "And I'm hungry!"

Beck sighed. "I don't know how to—"

The doorbell rang, stopping him mid-sentence.

"Don't worry, I know someone who does!" Cat beamed at him before leaving him in the kitchen to answer the door.

Sure enough, it was Jade. She frowned at Cat when the door opened.

"What happened?" she asked, her tone concerned, much like a mother's. "Where's the dog? Did it bite you?"

"I'm okay!" Cat smiled. "Come in!"

"Cat, I'm… relieved you're okay, but I'd really rather go back h—"

She grabbed Jade's arm and pulled her inside, giggling. "Let's make cupcakes!"

* * *

Beck sighed. "Is this really the time to be dramatic? She just wants to make cup—"

"Shut up," Jade snapped.

"You shut up. I'm trying to—"

"I don't care!"

Cat frowned. Not even five minutes into baking and they're already fighting? "Guys, stop!"

Jade stopped yelling, much to her surprise.

"Well if you told me he was going to be here, we wouldn't be having a problem," she said slowly, reigning in her anger, like she was talking to a five year-old.

"Don't blame her," Beck said.

Cat felt like a kid, trapped and scared amidst her parents' arguing.

"I am _not _blam—" Jade began, but then sighed and began washing her hands in the sink. "He's right. You shouldn't feel bad, Cat. I'll just leave you two. No sense in ruining tonight for you."

She dried her hands with the pink towel Cat makes her use every time they baked together, and just like that, she was gone.

Beck and Cat listened to her car door close and the engine start, and both had a feeling of familiarity.

"Should I really let her drive away like last time?"

Cat snapped out of her thoughts and into the present. "I don't know, maybe not? But chasing after her would be so funny, one time—"

Beck couldn't understand the rest of her sentence, which came out in between peals of giggles.

"Yeah, I think I'll go now too."

"What? No!" Cat pouted. "Jadey did that because she really loves you, you know."

"Really?" Beck asked her like she was a six year-old making up stories. But he knew that Cat was more perceptive than everyone thought she was, and he knew that she was very close to Jade.

"Really," Cat insisted, her tone serious. "She thought you'd get sick of her. No, she thought you _are_ sick of her and of taking care of her, especially after the medicine incident."

Cat explained further how Jade wanted them to think she was strong and stable enough because she didn't want to be a burden to him anymore, but in truth she still had dizzy spells and her memories flickered from time to time, and that she fell in love with him like she did before and she didn't want him to lose interest in her.

"She wanted you to want her. That's what I got from everything she said…" Cat said, then giggled. "She loves you."

"Oh."

"I think you should talk to her."

"Tomorrow, maybe?" Beck offered. "She might still be upset after this whole thing."

"Yeah! For now, let's make something we can give her tomorrow!" Cat said happily. "I know she likes mango-ish stuff! Let's make mango pie or something, I think I might have some—"

"Okay, calm down," Beck chuckled.

"Lemonjade and Strawbecky forever!"

"Oh, Cat…"


End file.
